“This Space is not for White People; this Space is for People of Color”
It’s OK to be racist and a bigot if you’re black. In fact, as the definitionists would have it, only white people can be racists and bigots, therefore, excluding whites because they are white cannot be defined as racism.
Defining and redefining words are important to move along new social, cultural, and political trends for the purpose of empowerment. Lewis Carroll has some insights:
“I don’t know what you mean by ‘glory,'” Alice said.
Humpty Dumpty smiled contemptuously. “Of course you don’t — till I tell you . . . . When I use a word, it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less.”
“The question is,” said Alice, “whether you can make words mean so many different things.”
“The question is,” said Humpty Dumpty, “which is to be master — that’s all.”
It couldn’t be said any better: Gay Rights, Pro-Choice, Progressives, Affordable Care Act, Social Security, Climate Change. Redefine a word, change the nature of the debate, control the opposition.
Now we get to race. The following story is from BuzzPo:
“In a massive college diversity fail, the so-called diversity and equity program managers at South Puget Community College organized a party for professors … that is, some professors, those that are not white. The organizers, among them Karama Blackhorn, program coordinator for the school’s Diversity and Equity Center, emailed invitations to teachers they consider to be ‘of color’ advertising a happy hour. Recipients had to write back to get the secret time and location of the meeting, a step that was necessary to make sure no white people attended.
“As revealed by King 5 News in Seattle, Karama Blackhorn cancelled the happy hour after news broke that white people were being excluded. But, she then defended the officially sanctioned shunning of white professors with this incredible statement: “this space is not for white people; this space is for people of color.”